[Propertalk] 6 Easter a 2017 part 1

[Robert P Morrison]

An early draft for Sunday.
Bob

	THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH OF ST. ALBAN, ALBANY      6 EASTER a

	ACTS 17:22-31          21st MAY, 2017

	1 PETER 3:13-22     PSALM 66:7-18

	JOHN 14:15-21

	 “Let us Break Bread together on our knees” – we sang it a few
weeks ago. It’s a well-known hymn. We might be able to recite a few
lines from memory. Certainly the first line. It’s not simply a
matter of frequency of singing these words, though. It’s the
concept, the encouragement behind these words. To Break – to
fracture into at least two pieces, probably more. Bread – one of the
stapes of life in just about every civilization, but in Christian
ritual and ceremony, one of the gifts we’ve been given as a symbol
of unity with and in Jesus, the Son of God. Together – the act of
being and interacting with others, doing things not necessarily in
lock-step, but in a common effort, working towards a common end. On
our knees – a deliberate sign of our acceptance of Jesus as our
Saviour, of our recognition of the indebtedness we feel to Jesus, of
our joy in being invited into Jesus’ company.

	 “Let us break bread together” – a confession of our faith and
a sign of our commitment. As is reported in the Book of the Acts of
the Apostles, “One and all … breaking bread in their homes …”
or, as one of the baptismal promises has it, “Will you continue in
the apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and
in the prayers?”

	 This bread-breaking, then, is in our blood. It is, or should be,
second nature to us, no matter where we are. No, not SECOND nature. It
should be our FIRST, our primary, our most instantly recognisable
nature.

	 But how do we get there? What about risks? ARE there any risks, and
how severe might this be in order to break bread?

	 “Who will harm you if you are eager to do what is good?” wrote
the writer of the First Letter of Peter anywhere from thirty to eighty
years after the death and resurrection of Jesus.

	 Who can argue with that? Who might quarrel with the person, the
group, who seeks to “do what is good”?

	 I’ll take a wild guess. Many may have a slightly different idea
– or even a substantially different idea – of what IS “good”.
People of reason CAN have different opinions. So, what’s the answer?
Jesus, as least the brief sound-bit we have from Him today, isn’t
completely helpful. He seems to talk in such generalities. He’s not
clear.

	 However, think for a moment. If Jesus had said that “good” was
paying $10 an hour as a minimum wage; of Jesus had said that
“good” was allowing fifteen year-olds complete autonomy – and,
as an aside, a fifteen-year-old in Jesus’ time was, if male, fully
enfranchised; if Jesus HAD been more specific, then all sorts of
things could have been justified today, which is simply untenable and
quite likely immoral today.

	 This is not to say that Jesus was never specific. In the seven and a
quarter lines printed as our Scripture insert this morning taken from
John’s Gospel, twice Jesus said, “keep my commandments” and
“those who have my commandments and keep them are those who love
me.” Jesus was being quite specific and completely basic. These
verses followed directly after last week’s ones about reassurances
and God’s Love and God’s preparations for us, and tied in with
what He had been saying about how Love is expressed and demonstrated.
Keeping the commandments is all about the way we are to interrelate
with God and with one another. Keeping the commandments means paying
attention to what we can hear, and how what we hear is expressed.
Keeping the commandments is more than just being nice. It means
looking to see and listening to hear what may be troubling someone,
what may be preventing any person from being able to live a full life
liberated by love.

	 On this, Jesus was very specific. If you have even a smidgeon of
doubt that what is happening may inhibit anything in any one
person’s life, then that’s enough for a full examination of
what’s going on, both in our personal lives and in the greater,
public arena.

	 This isn’t always clear, though. Jesus knew it. Countless
messengers from God in prior times knew it. Even the most devout
person since the time of Jesus knows it. So Jesus hinted at how
we’re to develop our consciences, our moral compasses that point to
the loving purposes of God. Jesus talked of another Advocate, Someone
who’ll be present for us and work with us.

	 Other than a few, brief, earlier references, such as at the baptism
of Jesus, there have only been hints about the Third Person of the
Trinity, the Holy Spirit. Here, though, as Jesus prepared for His
final weeks on earth, Jesus began to comfort the disciples and all
who’d follow after them. He talked about the way in which God
wouldn’t take people to a crossroads of decisions in life and simply
leave them to make the best of it. Jesus said that although HE
wouldn’t be visible, although His direct Presence might not be
there, God’s Advocate would be present. But then, there’s another
difficulty. It’s like, “Yes, but!” Yes, you’ll never be alone
as you wrestle with what the commandments are, and how they’ve to be
applied. BUT, you and I will ALWAYS have a role to play, a role
that’s not always plainly delineated.

	 Maybe that’s what may have been going on in Athens.

	 In many ways the Athenians’ culture bore many similarities to
ours. Theirs was a very sophisticated society. They had dramatic
presentations for entertainment and the time to enjoy them. They had
everything from slapstick, to farce, to serious philosophical
discussions about anything and everything. Nothing was off the table.
Everything that impacted the lives of the citizens HAD to be discussed
and analysed. For instance, the very basic, How was the health of the
people?

	 In Athens, there was a constant ebb and flow of trade, from within
the local area as well as from far beyond it. AND the city was dotted
with places for religious rituals to be practised. Just as in this
city, and most U.S. cities, there were worship places about every five
blocks or so. You could pick and choose, probably for at least some of
the same reasons: where you attended; what sacrifices were made; what
your expectations were and what your comfort level was.


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